Well, the last year and a half has been interesting, to say the least. I don't think in our wildest dreams this would have been what we have all endured. I think if someone had told us all this would happen we would have laughed and thought it was a terrible movie plot right?
So many of our lives have changed. Some of us have work and jobs we have had for years gone. The business we have all grown up with have all gone in a blink of an eye. The hospitality industry is in tatters and we are all a bit concerned about the future and what will happen next.
Today I want to talk about how to make a bit of extra cash and start your own business.
Where to start
Yes, sometimes the way to make extra money starts with a bit of your own money to get going. But the outcome can be amazing and very profitable and turn your little extra money maker into a full-time career. We could all use a bit of a push in the right direction to add a bit to our finance in case the worst does happen.
So let's take about how to start a business, shall we?
As an example say you want to start an online fashion store. First, you need to decide what type of fashion you want to stock. Do you want to stock? men? women? a mix? or children? It is always best to pick a sector to really focus on when you are starting out. One way is to look at what is available in clothing wholesale from J5 Fashion this will give you a guide to what is in stock at the moment and to what you want to stock and this gives you the stepping stone to the next step.
So let's say we are going to stock men's clothing. We need to look at J5 Fashion's men's clothing wholesale. Here we need to pick the niche and style we want to start out with. It is always good to start small and then you can add items and styles the more you grow but this gives you a good start. You need to think more about what the public will be buying not your personal style. Yes, you might have the best style in the world but this is the time to think about the masses. You can always add your individual flare when you are established.
This is is also where you need to think about what the season is you are going to be selling in. No point stocking a big jumper at the start of summer right.
Budget
Now is the time to think about the budget. You need a budget for the clothing its self, the marketing, advertising and selling of the items. You need to calculate how much you have and what you want to spend where. You will need not only the clothing but the marketing and setting up costs. These can be more costly than you think. So get on excel and make a little budget spreadsheet. I would also leave a little extra for unexpected expenses.
You also need to do the costing. So if you buy a t-shirt for £5 how much are you going to resell it for? This need to make you a profit and take into account all your costs too. This part can be tricky when starting out but there is lots of help out there to help you with this.
Let's face it you are in it to win it right? So profit is what you are here for. When doing this you also need to think are you going to offer free postage? or add a bit extra to the items to help cover this expense or charge postage at the end of the transaction.
Free postage will always entice a buyer. But it is not just to the actual postage cost. you also need to think about but the packaging too. How much it will cost you to get to the post office etc. I mean if it is a 30-mile trip that will cost you quite a bit in fuel.
Where to sell
So you have made your wholesale men’s clothing choices and you are ready to start the next step. Where are you going to sell your product? Are you going to sell on sites like eBay or Depop? or more locally to start with on local Facebook groups? Or are you going to take the plunge and set up your own site? Remember sites like eBay and Depop take a percentage and this will need to be in your budget.
I would set up my own site personally, it is really simple to do and this way you have full control of your stock, fees and marketing. You need to first buy your own site and domain name.
Your business name
So what are you going to call your business? This sounds simple but it is harder than you think. You need to be original and unique and still be you. You need to love your name as you will say it and write it more times in the day than you say or hear your own name.
Right, you have the perfect name it flows of the tongue and you know it will be seen. Now you go back to get the domain and low and behold that name is taken and you have to start again. You will get a name you like it might just take a few goes.
Email and socials
Next, I recommend getting the accompanying email address. You can do this easily I use Gmail. Next, I would register all your social media platforms with that email address. You wouldn't believe how quick these can get taken and then you end up with a different name. So be quick and grab them.
Next, your precious clothing arrive
Now is the fun bit you get to photograph the items you have chosen. I would start by using my friends and family to do a bit of modelling for me. You need to get some awesome photos for your site and all you social media.
Advertising
How are you going to get the word out about your amazing business? There are so many forms of advertising there are people like me who offer to advertise. So influencer and blogger advertising.
There is online advertising with ads from Facebook and Instagram. You can use friends and family to spread the word. There are local and national papers advertising. These days most advertising is online and that is where I would recommend you have a look.
Build your social media and let it do the advertising for you. Be smart don't put all your eggs in one basket try different things and see what works for you. But advertising is one of the most important steps in your new business venture.
Next upload all you new items to your site and you are ready to launch how exciting.
You have started to make a nice little business that who knows will one day maybe be your full-time job and make your dreams come true. I wish you all the luck with your new adventure and I hope this has given you a little more insight into what it takes to run your own fashion business.
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